Red Dawn, Blue Midnight, Green Day
by Supreme Kimchi
Summary: As the newly resurrected Team Rocket rebuilds its empire, a rookie trainer with an oppressive father, superior rivals, and an indecisive heart must choose a path of many to obtain power and achieve his goals. The power to protect? Or the power to destroy?
1. Chapter 1

**So! I figured that this fic needed a little more backstory so I took the liberty of writing the prologue. It probably doesn't reveal a lot of things, but hey, what's done is done.**

**There's some graphic violence in here, just throwing that out to you. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.**

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Chapter 1: Darkness Rising! The Elimination of Cipher!

A Manectric and its rider sped through the rocky landscape of Route 3. The rider cursed the several rocks strewn about the field, knowing for certain that there would be a collision if his Pokemon wasn't careful. But it would be worth it; finally, after years in that desolate desert, he would be recognized for his work. Truly, it was an honor working for Team Rocket.

At last, his journey had come to an end at a broken-down building near some cave named after the moon. It was very frustrating; due to his lack of knowledge of the Kanto region and the letters that were carried by various flying Pokemon notifying him of the change in locations of "headquarters" between several towns and whatnot. The rider dismounted, revealing a briefcase from one of the travel packs and headed towards the entrance.

He wore a sinister-looking white coat over purple pants. The man's hairstyle was a ponytail and a twisted bang hanging from the front of his head. And, to complete the outfit, he donned a pair of horn-rimmed black sunglasses. From the look of him, it's quite obvious to see that he is a scientist. A diabolical scientist, as a matter of fact.

From the shadows of the doorway, two men clothed in black with a large red "R" on their fronts stepped forward and blocked his path.

"State your name and business," rasped the Rocket on his left.

The scientist rolled his eyes. "Blast off," the scientist murmured.

The phrase seemed to be some sort of password because when the scientist uttered those words, the two guards twitched as if a bad itch had come upon them. They parted and he was free to enter. He passed through several doors, some required eye scans; others passwords. Finally, he reached the final room which was brightly-lit and very tiny; barely enough to fit three people. A downward jolt told him that this "room" was an elevator.

Few seconds passed as the elevator traveled underground. The doors opened to reveal a long table with shadowy figures already sitting in it in a dimly-lit room. A voice spoke from the far end of the table.

"Well then, now that Ein has joined us at last, shall we begin?"

The voice was female, seemed to be young, but there was a certain sinister and commanding tone about it. However, she wasn't sitting at the far end of the table; in fact, her face was hidden in shadows on a large screen connected to the ceiling in front of the table. Ein took a seat and sat down.

Several hours later as the meeting dragged on, Ein was bored out of his brilliant mind. The hidden female would ask questions and many members would answer.

"Viridian Forest is once again restocked filled with our experiments."

"New trainer statistics have dropped considerably."

"Team Righteous' location is still unknown but they are still a major threat; as they have been attempting to sabotage our projects for the past months now."

"Archie and Maxie still have not replied to our messages. That's why they're not here."

"But Team Galactic is interested in joining forces and they have sent messengers."

The meeting passed by smoothly until they came across a particularly touchy subject.

"Red, Blue, and Green are still missing. Their locations are unknown. Gold and Crys are also nowhere to be found. And Sil-"

Everyone jumped at a loud noise from the screen. The woman had slammed her fist on her desk with incredible force.

"Don't you _dare_ say his name again…" She hissed with venomous rage. The member visibly shook as he sincerely apologized. No other significant incident passed after that. Ein was barely awake now. Various snatches of the subjects reached his ears but he paid them no mind until...

"Wes, Rui and Michael including all associates are now dead."

At this, Ein sat up. "They're dead?" he asked. "When did this happen?"

An old man with sinister glowing yellow eyes on his left chuckled. "You should pay more attention to the news, Ein."

"I have better things to do than to keep track of the news, Greevil." Ein snapped. "And, the last time I checked, Cipher was defeated again by those children."

"And now they are dead." Greevil snarled.

"By what? Some huge weapon just blasted them into oblivion? Or perhaps you just cornered the brats as they made a last stand? Numbers never win a battle."

"No, but they certainly help. You weren't one of them."

Ein jumped from his seat, seething with rage. "You insignificant little midget. I should be the leader of Cipher!"

Greevil stood on his chair and puffed out his chest. "Like you ever will!" he snapped. "You may be our top scientist, however, you're going have to perform better if you want to move up!"

"That's pretty big talk from someone standing on his chair." Ein shot back.

Suddenly, Pin Missiles hit the wall behind them. Everyone turned just in time to see a Cacturne being recalled into its ball belonging to a figure who had also stood up from his place, enshrouded in the darkness. "Gentlemen, can you kill each other some other time?" The young man smoothly said. Ein and Greevil silently sat down, not taking their eys off each other. "Thank you. Shall we move on?"

Later, when the meeting had finished, as everyone exited the room through a different doorway into a hallway filled with fluorescent lighting, Ein was taken aside by the very same Rocket who was the owner of the Cacturne.

"Excuse me, Ein, there is a message waiting for you." The rocket said. Now that there was some light, Ein could see the Rocket member's face. He had a pale complexion, as if the member had never been out of the sun and had stayed in the hideout all his life. His gray eyes seemed forlorn yet stormy. A closer look revealed freshly clipped blond hair underneath his black cap. The young man had the face of a model and would have been quite good at his profession if only he hadn't chosen the life of a criminal.

"Where?" Ein asked.

"I shall escort you to a room."

Ein was taken to a small private room with a TV and a small desk. The Rocket followed while releasing a Magneton. Ein saw the magnet Pokemon but did not think much about it.

"So what's this message about?" Ein asked. The Rocket wordlessly tuned on the TV with a remote. Ein watched and his jaw dropped in horror as soon as it played. Live gruesome videos of his fellow comrades' deaths played on the screen. Other than Greevil, Ein wasn't aware that the other administrators of Cipher were here as well. Why were they silent during their "reunion"? That question was pushed out of his head as gory images flickered across the screen. Greevil was crushed to death by a Tyranitar, eventually flattened. His organs and blood splattered the floor. Venus was being forced to drink from a Blastoise's Hydro Pump. Miror B's ears were bleeding from Exploud's Hyper Voice. Dakim was being gored by a Tauros.

Ein shook his head in disbelief. "What's going on?" He then felt rain drops on his head. Rain? Indoors? He turned around.

"What's going on?!" Ein repeated. "I don't understand, my work in Cipher – no, everyone from Cipher should be Team Rocket now! Why turn against your own members?!"

The Rocket stared coldly at Ein. "You never were a part of Team Rocket. We're only doing this so that Team Rocket can accomplish our goals without competition, without resistance, and without mistakes. Every person that was a part of Cipher was lured here to their death. As for your work, we never needed it; it was a facade. As soon as you're done here, we will be taking care of them."

By now both the Rocket member and Ein were soaked from the rain. Ein smirked. "It'll never work. You'll never be able to purify the Shadow Pokemon. They'll never change."

Now it was the Rocket's turn to grin. "Oh, I didn't say anything about 'purifying', professor. I meant that since we really have no use for them, they will be destroyed. It's just a shame that you won't live to see them again." He jumped onto the small table and shouted, "Thunder!"

Ein opened his mouth to scream as the Magneton glowed. A huge lightning bolt struck Ein; he didn't even have time to cry out. As soon as the flash was gone, all that was left of Ein was a charred and blackened corpse. Blood and pus seeped out through the cracks of the burnt skin. The Rocket member produced a cell phone and dialed a number.

"It's me," he said. "…Yes. Ein is the last one. Team Rocket now stands alone. By the way, send someone to clean up the mess here."

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**Edit: I took out the steak sauce bit because I was originally to introduce either a bloodthirsty pokemon, or a cannibalistic rocket. Ultimately, I opted for neither of them.**

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	2. Chapter 2

**Almost total rewrite of this chapter. **

**Special thanks to Alexis and Hizzy for editing this.**

**Disclaimer: Go back to the previous chapter and read the statement out loud.**

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Chapter 2: Begin! The Energetic Flames of Carl!

One quiet morning, as the sun rises in the town of Pallet and the rest of the Pokemon world, trainers will leave their hometown and embark on their journeys and make themselves a legend. This is the story of one of those trainers, and he is in for a rude awakening.

"Carl! Get up now! I'm not going to call you again!"

16 year old Carl Zorbo woke up drowsily at his mother's voice. _I'll bet…_ he thought and went back to sleep. After five minutes, he woke up again to the sound of loud thumping. She kicked down the door; the loud banging caused Carl to jump. Looking up at her, he thought she looked positively furious.

Carl's mother clapped her hands and shouted. "Let's move it! Chop chop! The New Trainer's Orientation starts in thirty minutes!" She stomped downstairs.

Carl shouted after her. "But what about my door?!"

His mother snapped at him. "That's your fault!"

Carl sighed deeply and began to dress and realized that the Orientation was today! How could he have forgotten? Fresh from Viridian Academy, Carl was ready to get his very own Pokemon and start his journey.

He ran his hands through his black, unruly hair. Looking into a mirror, he met his own brown eyes. He was one of the top three in the Academy and he was well-liked because of his personality even though the Academy was filled with competitive kids. He was very friendly and kind to everyone; he had a good sense of humor, although he sometimes commented on irrelevant things that often caught people off-guard. His classmates had given him plenty of nicknames from "Airhead" as the least harmful, to "Crackhead" as the most severe.

Before going on downstairs, he paused to open his window and survey the weather. _Great, sunny._ He thought. He walked downstairs, just in time for breakfast. It seemed that he and his mother were the only ones since the rest of the family were nowhere to be seen.

His mom smiled sweetly at him. "Glad to see you're up. I made you the big breakfast sandwich, your favorite. But we ran out of jalapenos. Sorry!"

Carl grinned. "It's okay, mom." As soon as she turned away, his grin transformed into a grimace. _Why does she have to have a split personality?_

When he finished his sandwich, he set out to Professor Oak's lab. When he arrived, he could see many trainers lining up at the professor's house. They all chattered about which Pokemon they're going to get.

"I betcha I'll get a Farfetch'd!" One boy said.

"Please, a Dratini is way better than some duck!" Another boy said.

Carl turned away, snorting. He smiled to himself. There's no way the professor will give out rare Pokemon like those. But then again, in his excitement, he forgot which Pokemon he would like to get. He'd like to get one of the Elemental Trio: Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle. Anyone would really do; although he was rather partial to Charmander. A cry snapped him out of his thoughts.

"It's him!"

Thinking that it was Professor Oak, he whipped his head to the door. But the door was closed and the kids were looking at something behind him. Carl turned around and groaned. It was Dirk Ashford. Dirk smirked and stepped in front of Carl. The two exchanged greetings.

"Crackhead."

"Turd."

They turned away from each other immediately. It was well-known that Carl and Dirk loathed each other. Carl surveyed him; not much of his appearance changed since the last time he saw him: He still had spiky blond hair and the arrogant expression plastered on his face with his confident brown eyes. Dirk was second place in Viridian Academy while Carl barely made third.

"Hey guys!" A voice chirped. Carl and Dirk turned around. Alice bounced up next to them. This ditzy girl was at the top of her class although she didn't look it. Dirk just gave her a cold glare and turned around again. Carl shrugged and yawned. A silence followed. "So…how's it going?" Alice asked.

Dirk didn't say anything while Carl shrugged again. Alice tried one more time. "So what kind of Pokemon do you guys want? Grass has always been my fave type so a Bulbasaur would be an obvious choice. Did you know that Bulbasaur is the easiest to train out of all three starters?..." She rambled on and on until both Carl and Dirk couldn't take it anymore and walked off in different directions.

Alice Ginkgo is a daughter of one of the richest families in Kanto. Like Carl, she is a bit of an airhead, but at least she scored higher in her exams. She liked to talk a lot about anything. Just say a simple sentence around her, and she will come up and strike up a conversation. It can get pretty annoying especially if you weren't talking to her.

Suddenly, a loudspeaker blared, "All new trainers please move away from the door. Carl was shaking as he and the crowd shuffled backward. _This is it_...

The door in front of the house opened. The silence was deafening as everyone held their breath. A man wearing a crumpled lab coat in a wheelchair appeared with a young woman pushing him. The frail old man was losing his hair but had very sharp eyebrows.

There was a rumor going around that Oak himself had suffered a stroke. No one knows how, when and why, and he always goes out in a wheelchair with someone pushing him while out in public. Naturally, controversies arose but none of them were true. He started to sit in the wheelchair at a convention about two years ago, sometime around Ash Ketchum had disappeared for training.

"Would the top three students of Viridian Academy please step in my lab please?" Professor Oak croaked. Carl, Alice and Dirk stepped out of the crowd from different locations and walked to the professor's house. If they were nervous, they didn't look it. Duncan glared at anyone who stared too long. Alice smiled, oblivious to the jealous looks the three were receiving. Carl only wore a blank face until he tripped and fell on his face.

When he got up, Alice and Duncan were walking without a backward glance. All the other kids were snickered.

"Had a nice trip?" One person had called out.

Embarrassed, he jogged to catch up with them. They stepped in Professor Oak's lab. Soon there were all in a big room with a table holding three Poke balls. Oak's lab assistant turned him around to face the three. She spoke with him. "Now, grandfather, you know what the doctor said…"

"Yes, yes, yes, I know! Daisy, you worry too much."

To the three's amazement, the seemingly "handicapped" professor wasn't crippled at all! The rumor about the stroke was fake! Oak stretched his legs and arms after he got up from his wheelchair.

"Ahhh…that old thing is getting the best of me…So! You three," He pointed at Carl, Duncan and Alice. "Are you ready? Because, you are about to meet your Pokemon partner for the first time!" He then all of a sudden broke down into tears. Daisy sighed exasperatedly and put her hand to her face. All waited politely until the eccentric professor's sobs subsided.

"I'm sorry. Seeing the new trainers off has always been very emotional to me. So, tears aside, who would like to go first?"

Alice and Duncan didn't do anything but stand in silence; staring at the professor with odd looks. Carl, however, bolted towards the table and picked up a ball at random. He activated it. A brilliant flash of white light filled the lab. When the light disappeared, an orange lizard standing upright with a flame on its tail looked upwards and greeted Carl.

"Charmander!" The lizard said.

Carl stared at it for a long minute. Then he fainted. An awkward silence followed.

"Well, this is new." Daisy commented.

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**Seriously, isn't that new? A new trainer faints when he receives his Pokemon. All other trainers would jump for joy at this. A sign that this fic is unique.**

**Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Don't own it.**

**Enjoy!**

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Chapter 3: First Rival Battle! Dirk is a Jerk!

Carl awoke to find himself still lying on the floor He looked at his Poketch and saw that only two hours had passed since he fainted. Annoyed, he sat up. _What a hell of a way to start off my first day at becoming a fully-fledged trainer_. Carl angrily thought.

A door opened and a Pokemon came into the room, carrying a tray. It was egg-shaped, and had an egg pouch. However when he took a closer look, he could see that she was having difficulty holding it. Carl made sure that his shoelaces were tied and double-knotted then hurried to help the pink Pokemon. The Pokemon looked up at him and smiled wearily in gratitude. "Chansey."

Daisy also came into the lab room. "Oh, so you're awake." Carl nodded. She gestured. "Well, come on, you missed everything, now my grandfather has to explain everything to you." Daisy led Carl into another room. Carl saw the professor kneeling on the floor drinking tea and the orange Pokemon that Carl had released from its Poke ball blowing smoke rings.

The professor saw Carl as he sat down with him. "Ah, welcome!"

Professor Oak went into a long lecture about how to take care of his Pokemon, how to battle, and other stuff that Carl couldn't remember afterwards. When the professor was finished, Carl glanced at the Charmander which was now standing next to him with a look of pride on its face. "So, is this Pokemon mine?"

Oak nodded. "Yes. It is a Charmander. He's a fire type. They're somewhat difficult to take care of, but if you have enough patience, the job is very rewarding."

"I don't get it."

The professor was sipping his tea when Carl asked this. However, he could not believe his ears. He spat out his tea. "You can't be serious." He spluttered.

Carl stared blankly back at the professor. The professor's mouth dropped open. "Weren't you listening to everything I was saying?"

"Not really." Carl replied.

The professor opened and closed him mouth several times without saying anything. But before he could say anything, Carl interrupted him with a guffaw. "I'm just kidding, I know what to do. I plan to go all the way to Indigo League with my Pokemon."

The professor sweat dropped. "Is that so?"

"Yup. Oh, and one more thing. I have to know, who picked what?"

The professor closed his eyes and tried to remember. "Since Charmander is now yours, I believe Squirtle and Bulbasaur were left. So the girl must have picked Bulbasaur and I think Squirtle was chosen by the other boy." The professor opened his eyes. Quick as a flash, Carl had vanished. Charmander had also disappeared. He looked around in confusion. "Carl?" The sound of the Professor's door slamming closed answered for Carl.

Carl was now full of energy. He wanted to find Dirk and talk to him to bury the hatchet before leaving. He hoped he wasn't too late. He held his Poke ball up to his eyes while running. From inside the ball, Charmander stared back at him. In his Pokemon's eyes, Carl saw undying and fierce loyalty yet still retained its friendliness. Without watching, Carl bumped into someone. "Sorry." He said.

"You should be." Someone replied. Carl looked up and groaned inwardly. It was Dirk, grinning arrogantly. "Had a nice hangover, crackhead?"

"Shut up! I don't take drugs!"

Dirk smirked. "Yeah, you do."

Carl stood up. "Damn it! I'm getting really sick and tired of you always making fun of me! Let's settle this once and for all with a fight!" Carl launched a fist. However Dirk caught the punch with his hand. He scowled at Carl.

"If you attack another trainer physically, you're not a trainer yourself. For the proper way, we're using our own Pokemon." He held out his Poke ball and released a cute-looking turtle standing upright. It had an orange-brown shell, big black eyes, and light blue skin. "Meet Squirtle. My new Pokemon." Dirk said.

Carl also held up his own Poke ball. "Here's _my _Pokemon, Charmander!" He opened his Poke ball and in a flash of white light, the lizard Pokemon appeared. Dirk grinned and started to laugh.

"Good thing I picked Squirtle!"

Carl looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"Take a look at your Charmander. What type do you think he represents?"

Carl inspected his Charmander. He had no idea what Dirk was talking about. Then he saw the flame on Charmander's tail. It took a moment for him to remember Professor Oak's previous lecture. "Fire?"

"Duh. And my Squirtle is a water type. And what happens to fire when you put water on it?"

Carl had a sinking feeling. "It goes out?"

"Obviously. The same thing will happen to your Charmander. Squirtle, Water Gun!"

The little turtle spat a torrent of water towards Charmander. Carl acted instinctively. "Charmander, dodge it!"

The orange lizard quickly stepped to one side as the jet of water passed by it. Carl quickly looked at Charmander and said the first attack that came to mind. "Charmander, use Ember!" Charmander shot a fireball at Squirtle from its mouth. To Carl's surprise, Dirk did not command Squirtle to jump out of the way. The fireball hit Squirtle and created a lot of steam. The air cleared and Carl saw Squirtle standing without a scratch.

Dirk laughed. "You idiot! Physics and chemistry still apply to Pokemon battling! If you don't know anything, you'll never survive as a trainer!"

Carl looked down and didn't say anything. Tears stung his eyes. He thought about how he failed himself, his life, his dream even though he'd barely started. He thought about his family, seeing their faces… Carl's blood boiled. He'll show him…

"Charmander, use Ember again!" Charmander fired another fireball at Squirtle. When it hit Squirtle, the steam appeared again. However, Carl didn't wait until it cleared. Instead, he commanded Charmander to use Ember again and again. Right now, instead of small wisps, the steam had turned into a huge cloud of hot air. Through the fog, Carl saw Dirk's Squirtle. It looked like it was looking around in confusion.

Carl seized this chance. "Charmander, get in there now!" Carl's Charmander ran into the fog covering Dirk's Squirtle. "Now, give it everything you got! Pummel him into the ground!"

After sounds of hitting and growls, Squirtle tumbled out of the Mist, bruised and bloody. Charmander leapt out after it. Carl noticed the fire on his tail was bigger than before. Dirk's Squirtle struggled to stand up, but collapsed. Dirk gritted his teeth and recalled his fallen Squirtle. Carl, with a grin, walked over to Charmander, crouched down, and raised its tiny arm in victory.

"Carl…"

Carl looked up and frowned. Dirk had vanished. He still wanted to talk to him Professor Oak was instead in his place, wheezing with an old bicycle at his side. "I see that you won your first battle." He panted. Carl smiled.

"Yeah. I guess."

The professor held up a red rectangular object. "You forgot this. This is a Pokedex. This records every single Pokemon you've seen and/or caught. It is also your license."

Carl took it and flipped it open. All of sudden, there was a flash of light. Blinking, he stared into the Pokedex. The flash turned out to be the flash of a built-in camera. Sure enough, there was Carl's picture in the Pokedex. He closed it. "Well, guess I better pack up."

"Indeed. Good luck to you Carl. I expect I'll see you soon at the Indigo League."

Carl smiled. "Thanks." He walked away.

Professor Oak watched him leave. He shook his head slowly and walked off in the opposite direction. _Yes…Those three will do great things…_ The professor thought.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: You know the drill, lawyer, come back with something better.**

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Chapter 4: Journey Start! Wake-Up Call!

As the yellow sun rose up in the sky, Carl slept like a rock. However he was in for an unexpected awakening…

"_The champion, Carl Zorbo!"_

_Carl stood in amazement when he finally defeated his last opponent. He jumped in joy. "I won! Oh my God I won! And is something burning? Cause I smell smoke!"_

Carl actually did smell smoke. He sprang from his slumber, screaming. The tips of his hairs were on fire. The source of the fire came from his Charmander, as it turned out, that it used the flame on its tail and set his hair on fire to wake him up. Carl hurriedly put out the flames on his head and looked at Charmander. He chuckled. "Well, I guess that's one way to wake up!" Charmander beamed at him. Carl picked him up and headed downstairs.

As soon as he arrived in the kitchen, his mother looked at him and asked, "Did you get a haircut?"

Carl cringed and looked for a mirror. He passed Charmander to his mother. From the hallway, he heard his mother crooning to his Pokemon.

"You are just so cute!"

Carl found a mirror and gingerly touched one of his burnt hairs and crumbled away. "Yeah, that cuteness cost me a couple of hairs too." Carl muttered to himself. He walked back to the kitchen. His baby sister, Coco, gurgled at him and threw her rattle on the floor. Meanwhile his father had buried his face in the newspaper, ignoring him. Carl picked Coco's rattle and set it on the table.

He cooed to her, "Does Coco want Choco Puffs?" Coco laughed and hit Carl with her rattle.

"Carl, stop bothering your sister." Carl turned around to look at his father, who as still behind the newspaper. He was about to angrily retort but thought better of it. This was his last day with his family for who knows how long. He might as well as grin and bear it…

After a large breakfast, Carl went up to his room to pack. Yesterday, he bought all the Potions, Antidotes, Heals, and Revives he could buy. Then he returned Charmander to his Poke Ball. He was now wearing a white shirt, jeans, and a red hoodie. He also took a better look at his Pokedex. He checked Charmander's information in the Pokedex. It read: "The fire on the tip of its tail is a measure of its life. If healthy, its tail burns intensely." He also checked Charmander's techniques: Scratch, Growl, Ember, and Rage.

"Carl! Could you come down here?" His mother called him.

"'Kay, mom!" He shouted back. He traveled downstairs and was showered by confetti. His house was filled with people wanting to see him off so they threw a short surprise farewell party. He was given gifts meant to help him on the way. He received extra clothes, food and cooking supplies, a fishing rod and lucky charms. Thanking everyone as they left, he retrieved his backpack and Charmander's Poke Ball and stuffed some of the extras in his bag. After everyone left, Carl and his family said their goodbyes.

His mother's tears ran down rapidly down her cheeks. "Be careful," she said and gave him a strangling hug and ran back inside. Coco was crying so loudly that she couldn't hear a word so Carl planted a kiss on her forehead instead. She too toddled back inside the house. When Carl reached his dad, they did not speak. His dad was about to say something, but Carl cut him off. "Dad, I just want you to know that this my choice and I will go through with it until the end."

His father stared at him stone-faced. His dad finally said, "You'd better, because your luck won't save you all the time. Just make sure you don't waste your time. And instead of wishing the best of luck to you, I hope you fail."

Carl gritted his teeth and didn't say anything. His father smirked. "You might want to leave now, it's high noon right now." His father finally went back inside, leaving Carl alone outside.

It wasn't exactly easy leaving his hometown behind for his journey. Carl felt torn between living home and doing nothing or gaining a renowned title of his generation. The fame and glory side won. With a not exactly heavy heart, he set off.

He never was very fond of his family. His mother would pretty much nag at him for everything and giving him multiple demands; Carl hated to multi-task. His father would often criticize him for anything even if the deed was to make him proud of his son. Coco was just fine even though she was a bit of a brat. Carl shook his head vigorously. He had to get these depressing memories out of his head.

"Look on the bright side, Carl. You're finally on your way for your journey." Carl said to himself. He started to fantasize about when his Charmander would evolve a powerful Charizard. He could see the fire-breathing Pokemon defeating its enemies with its flame and strength all the while flying majestically.

Carl then stumbled on a rock. He sighed irritably. He was going to have to watch where he's going from now on. He decided to take a break so he set his bag down on the ground and sat down. After brooding from his father's verbal attack on his pride, Carl heard chattering in his bag. Sitting up, he zipped open his bag and found a pair of Rattatas chewing on his clothes and food. Upon seeing Carl, who was about to yell at them, they scampered away for a short distance then turned to face him. They waved their tails and gnashed their teeth in anger. He noticed that one of the Rattatas had shorter whiskers than the other. Carl knew that the one with the shorter whiskers was female.

Instinctively, Carl released Charmander. Charmander Growled menacingly. The Rattata couple was frightened for a short time but recovered. One of the Rattata charged forward with a Tackle while the female leaped over the male Rattata and attacked first with a Tail Whip. Charmander was stunned and couldn't block the Tackle attack from the male. Charmander was shoved back, taken aback.

Carl shouted a command. "Charmander! Use Ember!"

Charmander shot a fireball at one of the Rattatas. It hit the female and Burned her. The female lay down, struggling to get up. Miraculously, the female stood up. Carl's mouth dropped open in astonishment. The Rattata couple charged again but this time with Quick Attacks. The male hit Charmander first which did some damage but then the female Rattata's Quick Attack made Charmander fall over.

Scared, Carl recalled Charmander and started to run. But after he went about ten steps, he turned back. The male Rattata was now helping its mate up which collapsed. Carl couldn't help but feel sorry for them so he fished into his bag and pulled out some nuts and a Burn Heal. He cautiously went back to the pair and laid down the nuts.

The Rattata couple stared at Carl suspiciously. Both of the purple rodents limped towards Carl. Carl swallowed, afraid since he had no protection. The female then placed herself in front of Carl. Carl took this as permission to spray the rat Pokemon with the Heal. The singed fur on the Rattata began to disappear. Meanwhile, the male gathered up the nuts. When Carl was done, both human and Pokemon stared at each other. Suddenly, they dashed away.

Carl watched them scurry away, feeling floaty. While doing this act of kindness, he accidentally forgot about his own Pokemon. "Oh crap! I forgot to heal Charmander! Sorry, man!" He opened the Poke Ball and Charmander appeared in a flash. He was in a bad condition. Carl quickly brought out a Potion and sprayed it on Charmander. When the bruises on the lizard Pokemon began to fade, Carl sighed in relief.

"We better get to a Pokemon Center fast, huh?" Carl said to his Pokemon. Charmander responded with a cheerful but weary call. Carl returned Charmander to his Poke Ball and walked to Viridian City.

Thankfully, the Pokemon Center was the outermost building in Viridian City and Carl went inside. He went up to the receptionist and asked for a room. The redheaded nurse smiled. "Why sure. All trainers are welcome to stay in any Pokemon Center." Carl brought out his wallet but the nurse shook her head.

"Sorry, we don't take payment. Almost everything here is free."

Carl put back his wallet in his pocket. "Well, that's good."

The nurse typed on a computer next to her. "Well, we're almost finished. I just need your Pokedex for identification."

Carl obliged and passed his Pokedex to the nurse. "Here you go, Miss…?"

"Oh, just call me Nurse Joy, it's easy to remember. And you can find all of my relatives in other centers in other towns as well!" She slid the Pokedex on a scanner and a tiny beep sounded. She gave back the Pokedex and also gave Carl a key. She said to him, "Your room is 104. Breakfast is served at 8 o' clock."

"Got it. Thanks, Nurse Joy."

"Anytime."

Carl opened the door to his room and fell on his bed as soon as he walked in. The room wasn't five star material, but at least the bed was comfy. Right next to the bed was a small table with a clock and a lamp on top. Another larger table was in front of the bed, also accompanied by another lamp. Perched on top of the desk was a laptop. A TV was located to the left of the desk.

Like most bathrooms at hotels, the bathroom was small but not to the point of being cramped. It even had toiletry samples and towels of multiple sizes. Carl undressed and stepped into the shower, washing away dirt and grime.

After the refreshing shower, Carl changed back into his clothes and sat on the bed, pondering about the future. There's no turning back now. To go back would be considered weak. But still, is he ready for the hardships that may come? No doubt he would come to a dead end at some points, but will he be able to regain his strength, and continue forward?

Troubled, Carl laid back on his bed, where sleep overtook him.

* * *

**I have mixed feelings about this chapter. I don't think I wrote the battle well enough. Want to give me your opinion? All you have to do is just review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm especially proud of this chapter because there's some foreshadowing here. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Pokemon, Ash wouldn't be a retard.**

* * *

Chapter 5: An Even Stronger Wake-Up Call! Resolution To Defeat!

Carl did not sleep at all in his room in the Pokemon Center. He had spent all night reading books and pamphlets about general information on Pokemon. He woke up in a cold sweat after ten minutes when he closed his eyes. He went out and searched for a bookstore in Viridian City. Fifteen minutes later, he was back in his room, with an armful of books. He had bought several Pokemon field guides and battling manuals. By the time he finished reading, it was four in the morning.

He leaned back in his chair at his desk and sighed in accomplishment. Then he yawned widely. He felt exhausted. This was the first time he had studied an all-nighter since back at the Academy. He looked back on his days at the Academy. He'd done reasonably well but better than the most of the other students.

Every month at the Academy, there is a series of exams that students must take to show their proficiency. There was a written test and then a battle or contest simulation with random rental Pokemon. Carl didn't do so well on the written exam, which was composed of several multiple choice questions, short answers, and a dreaded essay, but he was exceptional in the battle simulations.

In his third year, he was given a Sandslash, Tauros, and a Mr. Mime. For some reason, Carl was always paired up against Duncan. Duncan was equipped with Kingler, Machoke and Jolteon. Despite the obvious type disadvantages, Carl won.

The Sandslash started with Poison Sting then finished Kingler with two Slashes. Against Machoke, he didn't have much luck. It knocked out both Sandslash and Tauros with Cross Chops. But Mr. Mime Confused Machoke and it knocked itself out. Jolteon was easy. It was boxed in by Barriers before it could do anything and overwhelmed by Psybeam. The battle was close, but Carl had won in the end. That battle had given him the highest battling grade, even higher than Alice's; and enough to make up for his dismal written exam grade.

All of a sudden, Carl remembered his loss to the Rattata couple. With a horrible pang, he asked himself whether all of his wins so far at the academy were lucky breaks and flukes or for real. Was reality playing a cruel trick on him? Then he remembered his father's last words: "_You'd better, because your luck won't save you all the time. Just make sure you don't waste your time. And instead of wishing the best of luck to you, I hope you fail."_

Carl shook with rage. Was he telling him that he should give up? That smile on his face, it drove him crazy! Luck had nothing to do with this. His father actually went on his own journey and came back as Champion. That was years ago but still! What a hypocrite. And he actually called battling and training a waste of time. Carl hated his guts - no, his entire existence. Carl silently made a pledge to challenge his dad one day and destroy him.

xxXxx

All throughout breakfast Carl was in a rage. As he ate his eggs (which did not belong to or contain any Pokemon, thankfully) he glared at anyone staring at him. Charmander who was out of his Poke ball, kept trying to soothe him while munching on bacon but was ignored. Eventually Carl got sick of the center's atmosphere, put the rest of his eggs in a piece of toast, and left with Charmander in tow.

Carl found a boulder on the edge of the city and sat on it, facing Pallet Town. While chewing on his sandwich, he contemplated about returning to his hometown. What was the point of it all? He wasn't even prepared for a battle against a wild Pokemon, let alone two Rattatas.

Suddenly, the sound of rustling bushes shook him from his gloomy thoughts. Without thinking, he walked towards the vegetation in front of him. When he parted the bushes, a foot flew to his face. Carl fell on his back and knew no more…

xxXxx

When Carl came to, he was seeing green. Literally. He sat up, leaves falling from his face. It turned out that when he was knocked out, Charmander collected the leaves and covered Carl like a makeshift blanket. He looked around for the little fire Pokemon but all he found were scorch marks and scattered footprints on the ground. Alongside of the miniature battlefield, there was a drawing of an arrow, pointing to the west of Viridian City. It seemed that Charmander had fought off whatever knocked out Carl, chased it away, made the blanket of leaves for Carl, and went after the threat.

Carl immediately went into the direction where the arrow was pointing, passing several people and buildings. Not only that his Pokemon gave him a direction, but a trail. Every 25 yards, the resourceful lizard left one arrow after another. Finally the trail ended in a small valley. Carl ventured forth, hearing Charmander's cries. He saw a dirt path and was just about to step on it when a fireball rushed past by in front of him. Carl stood very still, stunned. He had almost been incinerated.

He looked to his left and saw his Charmander. The little dinosaur was dirty and panting heavily. There was a screech behind Carl, he whipped around to glimpse his Pokemon's opponent; however, he was knocked backward again by a foot. This time, Carl was hit in the mouth. Spitting blood, he looked up to see a furry monkey with a pig-like snout glaring at him. Taken aback, he crawled backwards to Charmander. He grabbed his Pokedex from his pants pocket and flipped it open. He pointed it to the furious monkey. The machine beeped into life, scanned the Pokemon and spoke in a mechanical voice: "Mankey. The Pig Monkey Pokemon. It lives in treetop colonies. If one becomes enraged, the whole colony rampages for no reason."

Carl looked around; there weren't any other Mankeys around as far as he can see. He pressed the Further Information button and the Pokedex spoke again. "Light and agile on its feet, and ferocious in temperament. When angered, it flies into an uncontrollable frenzy."

"That doesn't help much," Carl muttered. Then he looked up just in time to the Mankey dashing towards him and Charmander. It scratched Charmander several times; one of the scratches was so deep, blood seeped out. Then it brought Charmander down with a single Low Kick.

"Hang in there, Charmander," Carl shouted. "I'll get you a Potion." Charmander struggled to get up and was back on his two feet successfully. Carl fished for a Potion in his bag. He sprayed it on Charmander and his Pokemon was good as new and ready for battle. "I'm gonna beat and capture you!" Carl shouted to the wild Mankey. As soon as he finished his sentence, the angry Pig Monkey charged but Carl was ready for it.

"Charmander, Use Ember and when it's distracted, get in close and Scratch it." Carl ordered.

Charmander fired a fireball. The wild Mankey sidestepped and Charmander rushed in. It was a direct hit. Mankey may have dodged the Ember attack, but since it was angry and could only focus on one thing at a time, it didn't have time to dodge the second attack. The result was Mankey having red streaks across its dirty-white fur. Now, the wild Mankey went completely ballistic. It suddenly ignored Carl and Charmander and began to stomp the ground. When an innocent Rattata appeared, the crazy Mankey sent the poor critter flying. Abruptly, the enraged Mankey turned on Carl and Charmander who jumped backwards.

Strangely, the wild Mankey did not attack them. Instead, it dashed to a nearby tree and began pummeling it mercilessly. Leaves cascaded down every time the tree shook from the impacts of the Mankey's blows. When one of the wild fighting Pokemon's fists hit a branch, it bent backward then whipped across the Mankey's face.

Carl could see the Pokemon was drunk with rage. It reminded Carl of his anger towards to his father. He could see that if he was going to face his father, he must do it calmly, and not let his emotions get in the way. If he lets his anger get the better of him, he will only end up hurting himself.

A screech shook Carl from his epiphany. He glanced up and saw that the rampaging Mankey had finally set its sight on Charmander and Carl and was running towards them. Carl acted quickly. "Charmander! Unleash your full energy using Ember, now!"

Charmander took a deep breath. With a small roar, a huge fireball formed in his mouth and engulfed Mankey. Mankey was severely burned, its fur turned black. Carl threw an empty Poke Ball and captured Mankey. The ball wiggled on the ground signifying that the Mankey still had a little fight in it, as if trying to defy Carl. However, there was a small pinging sound, signifying that Mankey had been captured.

Carl smiled slightly. Wordlessly, he picked up Mankey's Poke Ball and clipped it to his belt. He did the same with Charmander and made his way back to the Pokemon Center. The small smile on Carl's face had changed into a look of determination. He will defeat his dad, no matter the cost.


	6. Chapter 6

**And another God-awful chapter that took really long to update! I really didn't like this chapter, everything seems so awkward. I would get a beta, but I'm too lazy. **

**This particular chapter has an OC that belongs to...well, I accidentally forgot his name so check the reviews, you'll find him.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 6: Mysterious Dean! The Power of Aura!

As Carl entered the Pokemon Center to heal up his Pokemon, he couldn't help but feel that he was followed. He looked behind him but there was no one there. Once his Pokemon were fully healed, he set out towards the Viridian Forest.

The Forest is infamously known for its winding mazes of trees so high that they can block out the sun. The trees also harbor several new bug type and other kinds of pokemon. The trek through the forest was bound to be long, tiring and even confusing. So Carl bought several supplies beforehand.

While he was making his way to the forest, he passed the Viridian Gym. There was a man wearing a gray vest and dark jeans standing in front of the closed doors with his back to Carl. Quickly, the man turned around and caught sight of Carl. He then walked towards him. Carl saw this but did not move.

As the man got closer, Carl noticed that there were no signs of Poke balls on his belt. The man stopped in front of Carl and asked, "Hi there, I'm Dean. Want to battle?"

Carl was dumbfounded by this sudden and random request. Carl tried to process this in his mind, but he heard himself answer, "Yes."

"Excellent! I see you have 2 balls on your belt, but how about a single one-on-one?" Dean said.

Carl was very put off by Dean's stature. He looked very serious but his sapphire blue eyes were twinkling, as if he was playing a joke on someone. Nevertheless, he agreed to the battle conditions. Then Dean lightly smacked his forehead.

"Ah, so sorry, I didn't ask for your name." Dean said.

"It's Zorbo. Carl Zorbo." Carl replied.

"Well then, Carl, shall we begin?" With that, from out of nowhere, Dean released a blue and black jackal standing on two legs with a black mask over its eyes.

Carl stared at it. "What the heck is that?"

"It's a Riolu, which is only native to Sinnoh. It's where I'm from, too."

Carl threw out his Mankey's pokeball and shouted, "Go, Mr. Furious!"

"Mr. Furious?" Dean grinned. "That's a fitting name."

Carl smiled proudly. "Thanks, I just nicknamed him 10 minutes ago."

Dean sweatdropped. "Uh, okay…Anyway, let's go!"

Carl took the initiative. "All right, Mr. Furious, let's start with a Low Kick!"

Dean ordered, "Riolu, Counter!"

As Mr. Furious charged Dean's Riolu, Riolu's eyes glowed and avoided Mr. Furious' kick at the last minute and knocked him back a good distance with a kick of its own. Before Carl and Mr. Furious could recover, Dean commanded his Riolu, "Now, Force Palm!"

Dean's Riolu ran to Mr. Furious, picked him up with a paw, which now had some sort of blue fire around it, then with its other paw, which was also glowing with blue flames, thrust it into the helpless Mankey and without touching it, sent Mr. Furious at Carl's feet, dazed.

Carl looked amazed. "What was that move just now? And what's with that blue fire around its paws?"

Dean mysteriously smiled. "That technique was called Force Palm. The user pushes the opponent with Aura, which is that blue fire. Riolus and their evolutions, Lucarios, are the only Pokemon to be able to sense Aura and manipulate it."

Carl grinned. "Wow, that's cool," then his grin vanished into a look of determination. "Now for my kamikaze trump card! Mr. Furious, use Thrash!"

Mr. Furious' eyes opened then he bolted up, all traces of tiredness seemingly gone. The frenzied Mankey let out a wild screech, then dashed forward towards Dean's Riolu and unleashed a fierce combination of scratches, punches, kicks, and whiplashes from his tail. The blows connected with the Riolu with satisfaction; Riolu didn't have a chance. However, Carl knew it was only a matter of time until Mr. Furious would become exhausted and be confused. When Mr. Furious struck Dean's Riolu a few feet back, he finally began to tire.

Dean seized the chance. "Riolu, now's our chance! Use Reversal!" Riolu got up and once more ran towards Mr. Furious. Mr. Furious was too tired and confused to see the blue jackal running up to him. Carl tried to warn him, but it was too late. The Riolu jumped and crashed into Mr. Furious with its paw. Mr. Furious went down with a thud; Dean's Riolu landing perfectly on his feet.

Carl sighed as he recalled Mr. Furious. This was his second loss, and it was almost right after his first. Dean recalled his Riolu and walked over to Carl. "Hey, nice battle. I thought you had me there with your Mr. Furious."

Carl said nothing; he tried to smile, but couldn't. The loss was too big for him to overcome. Dean saw this and said, "Tell you what; I'm heading over to Pewter City; and I'm pretty sure you're going there too. So how about I give you some training tips once we're in the Viridian Forest, okay?" Carl shrugged and said nothing again. Dean sighed. "All right, it's your choice." He took a right on the path to the forest, and left, leaving Carl to contemplate.

"Hey, Dean!"

Dean turned to see Carl running towards him. He stopped so Carl could catch up and rest for a bit.

"Train me," Carl panted.

Dean couldn't hear Carl properly. "What was that?"

Carl took a deep breath. "I said, 'train me'."

Dean gave Carl a small smile. "Heal up first at the center," he instructed. "I'll wait for you."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter seven redone! I liked writing this chapter because it has so much plot devices. It also features my first time using random letters for a line break. :)**

**This is probably my most epic chapter so far lol**

* * *

Chapter 7: Rocket Appears! Begin The "Forest of Hell" Training!

Carl woke up, not even tired at all. He glanced at his Poketch, and groaned softly. It was only dawn; way too early to get up. Carl wasn't an early riser and now that he's actually getting up early, that's a bit strange. The reason he's been waking up earlier than usually planned, was because he's been going to bed, well, early. The reason for that? He has nothing to do.

Dean was helping him train, but it was more like Dean training his Pokemon instead of giving tips and helping out. Dean would basically take over the training session, leaving Carl nothing to do. This did frustrate Carl quite a bit, but he didn't say anything. He also knew that it was for the greater good. But for whom?

_Maybe I should try it for myself,_ Carl thought. _Rather than having someone else do it._

He wriggled out of his sleeping bag and unzipped the entrance flap of his tent. He and Dean had camped in a meadow clearing between a sea of trees on one side and a gentle stream on the other. Dean's tent was a couple of feet close by. A mist hung over the entire length of the stream as the cooing chirps of the Pidgeys and Kricketots rang out while the sky grew increasingly a lighter shade of orange, then eventually to light blue, announcing the coming of the morning sun.

Carl was so transfixed by this peaceful scene of nature's tranquility that he did not notice Dean's head poke out of his own tent, looking around sleepily, all bleary-eyed, hair mussed up. "Hey," Dean croaked, startling Carl. "At least put on some clothes if you're going to go out in the morning."

Carl looked down and was surprised to see that he was only wearing his boxers. "You didn't see anything!" he cried out as he dove back into his tent.

"Like there was anything down there," Dean muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing."

xxXxx

Later, after a breakfast of crushed berries and toast (the bread was roasted over a fire); Dean offered to help with training again. But this time, Carl politely declined.

"No thanks, I think I'm going to try my hand. But first, I'm going to take a walk with my guys. You know, for a warmup."

Dean smiled in approval and nodded. "Sure, but don't take too long!" He called. "I hear this forest can be like a maze!"

Carl sighed in annoyance. _That should be my line. _

xxXxx

"Come on, girlie, we've searched for you for hours, you've gotta come with us."

"Hmph. You idiots are lot more intelligent than I gave you credit for; looking for me in the forest all night, then finally catching me. But still, I'd rather not waste my time with a couple of homos like you."

"That's it, you bitch. I've had enough of this. Prepare for battle!"

xxXxx

As Carl traversed the forest, he was beginning to hear the sounds of a Pokemon battle: Humans shouting commands and Pokemon attacks clashing. He rushed towards the source, eager to see the current state the battle was in. When he arrived at the location of the battle, he became a little confused, wondering what was going on. Two men, both wearing matching black uniforms with a large red "R" on their fronts were engaged in combat with a girl, possibly older than Carl, with blue hair and wearing an orange top with blue shorts. One of the two men had a Raticate and the other sent out a Murkrow. The girl, meanwhile, only carried a single Scyther and a long pouch strapped to her back. Carl knew that something was up and crouched down in a bush.

"Scyther, use Double Team!" The girl cried.

The two black-clad men also shouted orders. "Raticate, Hyper Fang!"

"Wing Attack, Murkrow!"

The green insectoid split itself into six copies, spreading out in a semi-circle. Meanwhile, the large beige and brown rat with abnormal large teeth charged, opening its mouth wide, and took a big bite out of the closest Scyther. But then it fizzled out, a fake. Then the crow smacked its wings on another Scyther. That too also disappeared.

The Scyther's trainer glared. "Time to end this. Scyther, Air Slash!"

To Carl's confusion, the Scyther slashed the air with one of its scythes. Then to his shock, a gash appeared on the Raticate. The rodent squealed in pain and collapsed, rolling around in agony, its blood steadily flowing out.

One of the men cursed and recalled his Raticate. "Damn it!"

The other stared unflinchingly. "For an Air Slash to be so fast, so deadly, your Scyther must be very well-trained." The girl didn't reply. "Very well, I admit defeat."

"But Marcus!" the Raticate's trainer protested in anger. "I know you can take her down! Come on!"

The man named Marcus narrowed his eyes. "That may be so, but we lack some certain necessities. To face her would mean death." He turned to the girl and smirked. "Fear not, my dear, Team Rocket will come for you again." Suddenly the two were surrounded in a brilliant flash of light and vanished.

The girl scoffed and spat on the ground. "And I'll be waiting."

It was at this time Carl decided to show himself. He started to stand up, but a katana's tip, which came from the long pouch, landed gently on his nose. The girl had somehow heard him emerging from the brush and probably teleported to his position while pulling out her blade. He froze, afraid to make a move.

"You really suck," the girl said.

Carl blinked. "What?"

The girl gave him a hard stare. "I said you suck. Hard. I can't believe this. You didn't bother to send me emails, call, or even a write a freakin' letter, or anything! Now I come here into this Arceus-forsaken forest after being on a ship for a whole day, and you don't even freaking recognize me?!"

Carl shook his head, scared that the wrong word might behead him.

The girl sheathed her sword, brushed a strand of blue hair form eyes and sighed exasperatedly. "You're allowed to talk, Carl Zorbo."

Suddenly it dawned on Carl. "Nicole?"

Nicole threw up her hands in the air. "Now he remembers!" she growled.

Nicole Shinsuke was a very old friend of Carl's back in Hoenn, long before Carl moved to Kanto. Before Carl traveled to Kanto, he promised her that he would contact her as soon as possible. Turns out that he forgot about it years later. It's probably worth mentioning that she's two years older than Carl. Nicole was very interested in the way of the samurai; as a result, she always carried a katana everywhere she went.

"But-but, it's been such a long time and-"

Nicole held up a hand. "Save it! I don't want to hear your lame excuses right now. I'm tired, and I'm PMS-ing. The least you can do now is to take me to your base camp."

"Ok, whoa." Carl said. "How did you know that I'm on my journey?"

"Your mom told me a little right after you left." Nicole deadpanned. "She wanted me to track you down and accompany you."

Carl sighed. Of course. His mom would've never let him go anywhere alone. Seeing Nicole again and traveling around with her would be nice, but since he was already traveling with Dean, Nicole wasn't really needed. Dean wasn't bad, although he can be a bit of an insufferable know-it-all. On the other hand, Nicole was violent, a loose cannon. His mind made up, he was about to repeat what he said in his mind to Nicole, but she just smiled dangerously and pulled out her sword again.

xxXxx

Back at the camp, Dean was sparring with his Riolu. Before training, he released another member of his party, an Empoleon. The majestic-looking penguin stood vigilantly under the shade of a tree, eyes constantly darting around for any possible source of attack. The Empoleon grunted, signaling his trainer. Dean stopped and looked around to see Carl coming back accompanied with a fierce-looking girl. He caught her eye but before he could say anything, the girl pointed to him and said, "Who the hell is this guy?"

"Nicole, be nice!" Carl said to her, hoping Dean wouldn't be offended. Quite the contrary. Dean wasn't the slightest insulted at all. In fact, he smiled.

"I'm Dean Shapiro, pleased to make your acquaintance." He tried to kiss her hand, but she pulled it away.

"Ew, creeper."

"Nicole," Carl muttered. "The least you could do is introduce yourself to him."

She scowled. "Fine. I'm Nicole Shinsuke. Want to make something out of it?"

Still smiling, Dean held up his hands. "Whoa, whoa, aren't you a little toughie?"

"More than that," Nicole said flatly and pulled out her katana.

Dean smirked and got into a fighting stance. "Really? Because I'd love to see what you're made of."

Carl stepped in between them. "Guys, come on! There's no need to kill each other! I mean, you guys just met; there's no reason to hate each other on first sight."

"Wanna bet?" Nicole and Dean said simultaneously.

Carl sighed exasperatedly. Then he had an idea. _All trainers like to see Pokemon, right?_ "Hey, Nicole, do you want to see what Pokemon I have on my team?"

She didn't take her eyes off of Dean. "I couldn't care less," A moment passed. "Nah, I'm kidding." A grin washed away her piercing look as she put her sword away. "Now show me what you got."

Carl beamed. "Come on out, guys!" Carl tossed three Pokeballs onto the forest floor. They opened to reveal his proud-looking Charmander, angry Mankey, and the newest member, a timid-looking Pikachu.

Nicole groaned. "The Charmander, I can understand, and the Mankey is okay, but a Pikachu?! That is so unoriginal. Everyone has a Pikachu these days! Arceus above, I always hear every little kid saying before they get their starter, 'Ooh, I want a Pikachu! Because it is sooo cute! And it's totally not because I don't want something else that is completely better than it, I just want to be a conformist!'"

Carl interrupted Nicole's ranting. "Yes, I'm guilty of having a Pikachu, so what? The only reason so many kids wanted a Pikachu as their starter was all because of Ash Ketchum!"

"Exactly! It's all that dumb kid's fault! If he would've evolved it, then he would've won a lot more battles faster and easier! Not to mention that he could've gotten laid!"

"The reason Ash didn't evolve his Pikachu is because of his battle with Colonel Surge! His Pikachu wanted to prove that it didn't have to evolve to become stronger! And I'll thank you very much not insult Blitz or his species any further!"

Blitz the Pikachu was frightened by Nicole's shouting and began to cry. Carl scooped up the electric mouse and began to comfort it like a baby.

Nicole raised an eyebrow. "You even nicknamed them?" She started to laugh, but not in a belittling way. She pointed to his Mankey. "And what's his name? Porkchop?"

"Actually," Carl piped up. "That was going to be my first choice until I thought 'Mr. Furious' sounded better."

Nicole groaned again and slapped her forehead.

xxXxx

After proper introductions were made to Nicole, Carl and Dean explained from how they met to Dean's promise to train Carl. Nicole started going into one of her ranting moods again until she stopped mid-rant and smiled. She told Carl to follow her deep into the forest to a suspicious-looking tree and told him to release all of his Pokemon next to the tree. Once he did, Nicole took out some rope and proceeded to tie all of them up to the tree, Carl included.

"Okay," Nicole said. "Since Dean here has trained your team extremely well in defense, you're going to have to increase your attack power and speed to balance everything out. This kind of training is specifically for dodging enemy attacks."

Carl raised a hand. "Um, questions."

"Yes?"

Carl turned to Dean, who was beside Nicole. "Dean, what exactly did you do to raise their defense levels?"

Dean shrugged. "I had them spar with my Riolu and sometimes with Empoleon." Carl winced; he noticed that his team did likewise. "Yeah, they did lose horribly, so I worked on their endurance. They still lost miserably against Riolu, but they are improving."

"Any other questions?" Nicole asked.

Carl looked at Nicole with apprehension. "Yeah, I got another question. Why am I tied up to the tree too?!"

Nicole scratched her cheek. "Training isn't just for Pokemon, you know. That's what most trainers these days never realize; they claim that they're connected with their Pokemon forever and always. That's where they're all wrong. In bonds, maybe, but not really in mind, body, spirit, and especially heart. To truly become one with your Pokemon, you must train with them. You have to sweat with them, cry with them, and even bleed with them. So one of the last things I want to see is you turning out to be one of those careless trainers like I described."

Carl was mesmerized and awe-inspired. He hadn't really thought of Pokemon training as something like that. "Ok, I'll do it!" he declared.

Nicole clapped him on the shoulder. "Well said! See you later!" She then picked up a small stone and threw it all the way up into the tree's branches where a small thunk was heard. As soon as she released the stone, she grabbed Dean by the shoulder and sprinted away.

"Wait!" Carl tried to wriggle out of the rope. "What do we have to dodge? Don't leave me out here all night!" A loud buzzing filled his ears. Within seconds, Carl and his Pokemon found themselves surrounded by angry Beedrill.

xxXxx

Not too far away, in a thicket, Nicole and Dean watched Carl and his team trying to dodge the stinging Beedrill through binoculars. Nicole was chuckling while Dean was a little disturbed by her training methods. "Aren't Beedrills supposed to be poisonous?" he asked.

Not taking her eyes off, Nicole answered, "No. This type of Beedrill only has one stripe on their abdomens, making them not venomous. See? Other than some painful stings, he'll be perfectly fine."

Dean was quiet for a minute, taking this in. "Huh. I didn't know that Pokemon have subspecies."

"Not all of them do, but there are quite a few." Nicole said. "Oh, it looks like Carl is finally starting to fight back."

Indeed, Carl was starting to counter the Beedrill stings but ordering one of his pokemon to dodge some of the stings then attack while the other two would defend Carl and then they would rotate.

"You're a sadist, you know that?" Dean said.

"Maybe, but at least I'm not a masochist."

xxXxx

That night, as Carl slept, covered in various injuries, Nicole watched the clear starry night while smoking her pipe. While she did not smoke tobacco, she smoked Oddish leaves instead. They were already cleaned from any toxic particles, making it perfectly harmless, but it does give off a very pleasant and a slight intoxicating smell.

She looked down to see Dean walking over to her. He sat down next to her and asked, "I've been meaning to ask you this… what is your relationship to Carl?"

Nicole blew a smoke ring. "I'm his girlfriend."

"You sure seem a little too violent and dominating to be anyone's girlfriend." Dean commented.

"So?"

Dean sighed. "Does he know?"

"About what?"

"Well, you know…"

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you are talking about," Nicole flatly stated. Dean rolled his eyes. "But… I do know that he has incredible potential. How did he ever catch that Pikachu anyway?"

"Well, apparently, while I was training Carl's pokemon, Carl went out for a walk. An acorn had rolled into his path and the Pikachu followed it. They made eye contact with each other and the little critter just ran off into the bushes. Carl then coaxed it with the acorn and although it took some time, the Pikachu agreed to join him."

Nicole laughed softly. "Typical Carl. You could always see him being so friendly with the pokemon back in Hoenn."

Dean did a double take. "Carl came from Hoenn too?"

"Yep."

"He never told me about that,"

"Carl just met you. Besides, he didn't really like Hoenn that much, with his father being Champion and all," Dean's mouth dropped open in shock. "Oh yes, Carl is basically royalty, but he doesn't like to use his status. But the thing is that Carl and his father hate each other. Well, actually, Carl tries so hard to make his father proud of him just once, but he never praises his son."

"Let's change the subject. This sounds very depressing."

"Yeah, you're right." Nicole emptied her pipe. "Oh, I should also mention that I was attacked by Team Rocket." Her tone sounded as if she was discussing the weather.

Dean sat up straight. "What!? Why didn't you tell me?!" he loudly whispered. "We could've contacted headquarters by now!"

"It's fine, it's fine. My Scyther already took care of them."

"But still-"

"What HQ doesn't know won't kill them," Nicole firmly said. "Besides, Carl doesn't know anything either." She chuckled. "I'm younger than you, and yet you're concerned with your partner, how sweet."

"That's because you're a girl."

"And proud of it. But next time, don't question your superior again." A pause. "Brilliant acting there before. I was surprised to see you with Carl, even though I was assigned to him."

"What can I say? I was undercover. Trainer rules."

Nicole silently nodded. She smacked Dean's leg before standing up. "Get some sleep. We have a couple of days left before we reach Pewter City."

"Yes, ma'am."

* * *

**Yeah, I know, ending was a little rushed, but that's ok. **

**Yes, the Beedrill scene was from Dragonball. You know, when Goku was just a kid back then. **

**Nicole's ranting is directly how I personally feel about most OT fics, even though I'm writing one too. It's not really Pikachu, but I'm talking about Eevee. Don't get me wrong, I like Eevee, but the eeveelutions aren't that great. I won't say no further.**

**Yes, it does look like Dean and Nicole know each other somehow; I am the author, after all.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Here's the real chapter. Sorry about the lame excuse and the broken promise. Thank you so much if you've been sticking with this story since the beginning.**

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Chapter 8: Arrival in Pewter City! Get Ready to Rock!

A pleasant stream of sunshine filtered in through the window in Carl's room in the Pewter City Pokemon Center. The light hit him, and he groaned softly. He opened his eyes, sat up, and stretched, his aching muscles screaming in protest.

He looked about the room and noted that the room he was currently residing in was no different than the accommodations back in Viridian City. Apparently he was too tired to notice the similarities when he, Dean, and Nicole checked in last night. Dean and Carl shared a room together while Nicole had next door all to herself. Dean's bed was empty and there was the familiar hiss of hot water in the bathroom so Carl assumed that the older trainer woke up before Carl and decided to take a shower.

All three were dirty and grimy from the Viridian Forest; Carl was in the worst shape. He shuddered from the training exercises from hell he had gone through in the forest. His jeans were tattered, and his red hoodie was completely covered in mud. Wearing only boxer shorts once again, Carl climbed out of his bed, wincing. When he got to the mirror, he recoiled in shock, fascination, and horror.

His eyes were sunken, as if he was starved. His hair was disheveled from either lack of washing or because of the pillows. Scars twisted all over his body like Yakuza tattoos. But Carl was most surprised with the drastic change of his body. His flat stomach was now a cobblestone street. His shoulders were broader, making him stand even more upright, causing his chest to stand out even more. He raised and flexed his arm experimentally, resulting in a very satisfying rise in his bicep. He whistled.

He then began to pose and flex in front of the mirror when the bathroom door opened, revealing Dean in a wifebeater and shorts with a towel over his shoulders. He caught sight of Carl flexing his muscles and stared. Both did not speak and stood frozen. Hair dripping, Dean jabbed his thumb towards the bathroom. "Shower's open,"

xxXxx

Breakfast was quiet as usual; the only change was location, where the three were at a diner. Nicole had tea and a small pastry. Dean licked his lips and went for the works: pancakes, bacon, and eggs. Carl had oatmeal and juice.

Normally he would eat something more substantial like Dean's breakfast, but his appetite was as elusive as Mew itself. He was going to be facing Forrest, the Pewter City gym leader. Having studied all eight of the Kanto gym leaders back at the Viridian Academy, Forrest's battling style was no secret to Carl. He also knew that Forrest's older brother, Brock, along with their father, used to be the leaders. Both brother and father had retired long before so it was up to Forrest to take up the mantle.

However, comparing Forrest to his predecessors, Brock was clearly the strongest. Forrest had recently taken up the post and was still getting the hang of his occupation. That would work to Carl's advantage. But two-thirds of Carl's team were weak against ground and rock Pokemon; Forrest's forte. Firestorm and Blitz would get crushed.

Thankfully, Nicole had foreseen this and proceeded to teach Carl's Charmander and Pikachu steel-type techniques. Mr. Furious would definitely be able to hold his own against one or two rock Pokemon, but what if the Mankey would get tired or get knocked out due to bad luck? It was always better to have a backup plan.

"Your Charmander managed to get the hang of Metal Claw, but keep in mind that the claws are still undeveloped since he's so young so the attack probably won't work sometimes." Nicole said.

"How will I know when the attack does work?" Carl asked.

"Just listen to your opponent's cries of pain."

"And just so you know what to expect," Dean jumped in. "I'll challenge Forrest first."

Carl and Nicole both agreed on this. Dean was powerful enough, and it was a wise, if not very cheap, strategic move for Carl. Forrest's Pokemon would probably be tired when it was Carl's turn.

When breakfast was done and the bill was paid, Dean and Nicole continued to fire tips at Carl, making him all the more nervous and flustered.

"Start out with your Mankey first. Strike hard and fast. Don't give them a chance to return the favor."

"Make sure that your Pokemon don't stand around the entire fight. At this point, they haven't experienced a high-intensity match like this. So they have to be kept on their toes at all times."

"If Mr. Furious gets knocked out, Arceus forbid, then send out your Charmander. He'll last longer than the Pikachu."

"Remember to try to use the environment against your opponent. Look around: there should be something around the arena that can be used to your advantage."

"And if you don't win on your first time," Nicole growled at Carl. "You can forget about dinner and sleeping in the Center until you win."

xxXxx

When the trio arrived at the Pewter Gym, and although the gym itself didn't look much, Carl's knees still shook. The interior of the gym was like a diamond in the rough. The exterior of the gym seemed mainly made out of only rock, but inside, it was well-lit, had a tiled floor, and a medium-sized circular reception desk. The entire lobby was empty except for a woman who was tending to the desk looked up towards the group and smiled broadly.

"Hello! Are you here to challenge the gym leader?"

_Why else are we here?_ Carl thought to himself. Dean grinned and stepped up first.

"That'd be me! And this little rookie here," He pointed to Carl. "Is going right after me. Is that all right?"

"Of course! The gym has more than enough Pokemon here."

Carl felt as if his gut was clenched by an invisible hand. This threw a wrench into his plans. Now he'll have to end up battling enemy Pokemon at full energy, making the battle difficult for him.

"Well then," Carl began. "I guess I should get ready to rock and roll!" He tried to awkwardly crack a smile but no one returned it. Even the receptionist's smile shrank by a few molars.

"Idiot," Nicole muttered.

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**If you hated this chapter, I don't blame you really. If you hated me, that's quite understandable. Just leave a review indicating why.**


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